Skip to main content
cancel
Showing results for 
Search instead for 
Did you mean: 

Score big with last-minute savings on the final tickets to FabCon Vienna. Secure your discount

Reply
Tony67
New Member

How do I create a conditional column by comparing data from two existing columns?

I am new to Power Query and using Power Query to pull data in from an external file.  The data has multiple columns. The two columns, Date and Mine, are the ones that I want to use to create a new conditional column from.  The value for Mine needs to be changed for one value based on whether it is before or after a certain date.

 

An example of the table looks like this

Tony67_0-1712854726850.png

I tried the following to create a new column that I would then use to replace the Existing "Mine" column:

= Table.AddColumn(#"Removed Columns", "Mine1", each if [Mine] <> "OBO" then [Mine] else if [Mine] = "OBO" and [Date] < 01/04/2024 then "OBC" else "OBO")

 

However the code above produces an Expression.Error

Expression.Error: We cannot apply operator < to types Number and Date.

Details:

    Operator=<

    Left=0.001482213

    Right=1/05/2024

 

I am hoping I just have a syntax error but any help is much appreciated.

 

1 ACCEPTED SOLUTION
AlienSx
Super User
Super User

use #date to create dates like #date(2024, 04, 01) for April 1st, 2024. Now you compare [Date] value with a result of division of 1 by 4 by 2024 (or whatever you do in your expression) - those are of different types which is not allowed in Power Query M. 

View solution in original post

3 REPLIES 3
Tony67
New Member

Thanks the #date(yyyy,mm,dd) format worked.

wdx223_Daniel
Super User
Super User

=Table.ReplaceValue(#"Removed Columns",each [Date],null,(x,y,z)=>if x="OBO" and y<#date(2024,4,1) then "OBC" else x,{"Mine"})

AlienSx
Super User
Super User

use #date to create dates like #date(2024, 04, 01) for April 1st, 2024. Now you compare [Date] value with a result of division of 1 by 4 by 2024 (or whatever you do in your expression) - those are of different types which is not allowed in Power Query M. 

Helpful resources

Announcements
August Power BI Update Carousel

Power BI Monthly Update - August 2025

Check out the August 2025 Power BI update to learn about new features.

August 2025 community update carousel

Fabric Community Update - August 2025

Find out what's new and trending in the Fabric community.

Top Solution Authors